


Once an Avenger...

by aphrosCartographer



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, M/M, Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-14
Updated: 2015-07-14
Packaged: 2018-04-09 09:00:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4342316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aphrosCartographer/pseuds/aphrosCartographer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the end of Ultron, the Hulk flew off to some unknown location taking Bruce with him. What happens when someone finds him?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Once an Avenger...

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place a few months after the conclusion of the events of AOU.

“I thought we agreed you wouldn’t do this again.” 

It took Bruce a moment for his brain to register the sudden interruption, mostly because he hadn’t heard the English language spoken in a while. He sighed, turning away from the small basin of water in his meager apartment and wiping off the excess spots of shaving cream from his chin. A figure stood in the small doorway, its face obscured by shadows. But Bruce didn’t need to see the features to know who it was. He would know that voice anywhere. 

“And I thought the cloaking device was turned on in that plane.” 

“Well yeah, it was. Why do you think I’m the one that got to you first?” 

“The idea behind leaving the cloaking device on was that no one would get to me at all.” 

“You were using my tech, Bruce. I don’t like it when people take my stuff, so I make sure I keep some means of recovering my stolen goods. Even if the plane was cloaked.” 

The figure stepped forward to reveal the lopsided smirk of confidence Bruce had grown accustomed to. The smirk he had fallen in love with. Tony Stark had a way of making an entrance without really trying, and today was no exception. He was without his normal black suit and shiny shoes, but the plain black t-shirt and jeans he wore brought back a flood of memories that Bruce had to quickly shut down. Memories of the chemical smell of the lab and late-night conversations about the world and its inner workings. Memories of feeling safe; feeling like he had a place to call home. It had been fun, but it was over. They were over. Why was that so hard for everyone to understand? 

“Why are you here, Tony?” 

Tony made his way into the room and sat himself down on Bruce’s only chair. The smirk had evaporated into a hard line when Bruce had spoken. His normally clear blue eyes were ringed with red, like he hadn’t been sleeping. _Or like he’s been crying…_ Bruce thought. _Oh please don’t let this be happening right now._

“Look, Bruce… I just want to talk. You don’t even have to say anything back, I’m just asking you to listen.” Tony paused, looking up from the floor and into Bruce’s eyes, “I’m worried about you.” 

Bruce felt a flash of annoyance go through his body at the comment, but he bit back his retort. Tony must have seen the look in his eyes, as he quickly continued talking. 

“Look,” Tony was sitting with his elbows on his knees, his chin resting on his hands, “I get that you think none of us can understand what you’re going through. And you’re absolutely right. I don’t understand what it’s like in your shoes. And I’m not trying to say that I want to or that I have the capacity of ever understanding. But that doesn’t mean I can’t help you or that I think you should just shut yourself off. I don’t want to see you collapse on yourself again. That road leads to a lot of bad ideas and even worse outcomes.” He paused, watching as Bruce plopped himself down onto the thin mattress of his bed. Bruce tugged his shirt off the bedpost and pulled it on, motioning to Tony to continue as he did so. Tony swallowed, like he knew he was treading dangerous ground. 

“Bruce, you have so much more to offer the world than this,” Tony gestured at the dingy room they were sitting in, “You’re brilliant. You have 3 Ph.D.’s, are world renowned as the foremost scientist on gamma radiation, have done some of the most ground-breaking work in organic chemistry since Pasteur, and, by the way, are an Avenger. Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and all that. _This_ isn’t where you belong. _This_ isn’t where you need to be. Do you remember the conversation we had? When we first met back on that helicarrier? When I told you that the Hulk saved your life for something? This isn’t it. You have the potential to help so many people, Bruce. You don’t have to hide. We can-“ 

Bruce held up a hand to silence the other man. He took a deep breath as he attempted to formulate his response. 

“Do you know why I left? It wasn’t to _hide_ ,” he put air quotes around the word, “It was to protect everyone.” 

“But Bruce-“ 

“No, don’t ‘but Bruce’ me. Let me talk for a second.” 

He stood up and began pacing the room as he spoke. How _dare_ Tony come and assume that he knew just how to fix everything. As if he could. He could feel Tony’s eyes on him, patiently waiting for him to talk. The swell of emotions that had been stirred up by Tony’s appearance was threatening to overwhelm him, and he fought to keep them from spilling out as he spoke. 

“You’re right. I can’t make you understand. I can’t make any of you understand. And I hope none of you ever has to understand this. After what happened in New York I thought maybe, just maybe, that there was a chance I could work with you to create something that would change the world. I felt like I had control. I could control the other guy enough to live in a big city and work to eliminate the need for the Avengers… I saw your vision, yet, as much as I wanted to believe that it was possible, there’s always this voice in my head that reminds me that I don’t have control over my life. I can’t suddenly snap my fingers and make the other guy go away. I can’t stay in control, as much as I thought I could. Wanda proved that with her stupid mind games. She did me a favor. I’m dangerous to have around. It-” 

“Stop,” Tony’s jaw muscle jumped as he clenched his teeth together, “Bruce, we can improve the Hulkbuster program. We can change something to make this work. There has to be something to prevent something like that from happening again.” 

Bruce softened a bit. Tony was an idiot sometimes, but he always meant well. He sighed and leaned against the wall, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“Tony, believe me, I would take you up on your offer in a heartbeat if I thought I could. But I just can’t take that risk anymore. I should have left after the Chitauri attack on New York. If I had just gone back to Calcutta or had come here, maybe those people wouldn’t have gotten hurt.” 

“Yeah and the entire world would have been destroyed without you, can’t you see that? We’re a team.” 

Bruce looked at the ground, unable to keep eye contact any longer. 

“Tony, all of you; Natasha, Clint, Steve, Thor… you all are recognized as heroes. Everyone loves you. Shit, you have hordes of women outside the tower every day just waiting to catch a glimpse of you. People buy shirts with Steve’s face on them. I’ll be lucky if, when I die, someone has the decency to put something other than ‘Hulk Smash’ on my gravestone.” 

“So, what, you want more recognition?” 

Bruce groaned in frustration. 

“You aren’t listening to me. You guys are all heroes. You jump into the fight lasers firing and fists swinging, thinking about nothing but working together in order to beat the bad guys. Me? I’m not a hero. I’m a liability. I’m a tool; I’m not useful as an Avenger unless it’s the Other Guy. I’m a billion dollar lawsuit. And the worst part about it is that I wake up and I don’t remember it happening. What if I wake up and… and the other guy has killed you? Or Clint? Every time I wake up, it’s the same gnawing fear. Tony, I’m dangerous. You need to leave me alone.” 

“I’m not afraid of you Bruce.” 

Bruce scoffed. 

“Maybe you should be. The other guy almost killed you even with the Hulkbuster. What’s to stop that from happening again? How can you expect me to willingly put everyone in danger? If I’m here, I can help people. I may not be making the impact you want me to, but to these people… I feel like I’m making a difference. I’m helping these people. Sure, it isn’t exciting, and I don’t live in luxury, but this is where I’m content.” 

Bruce pushed himself off the wall and stood near the doorway, holding the door open. 

“Please go. I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but the answer is no. Not this time.” 

Tony didn’t move. He talked towards the wall that Bruce had been standing against, his back to the door. 

“Bruce I want to help you. You just have to ask and I will. If there’s a cure for you, the best two people to put on the job are you and I.” 

Bruce’s grip on the doorknob tightened. He glanced down at his watch, checking his heartrate. 115 bpm, still okay for the time being. He spoke just above a whisper. 

“The last time I tried to cure myself, people got hurt. It’s too dangerous. Please just go.” 

The chair scraped across the floor when Tony stood and walked over to the door. Bruce forced himself to look into Tony’s eyes, and was taken aback when he saw the sadness in them. Tony put his hand on Bruce’s shoulder before pulling him into a sudden hug. 

“Fine. I’m not going to pretend I’m okay with this. Because I’m not. Just remember, you always have a home with me, okay? You’re still my best friend Bruce, and I’m always there for you.” 

Tony pulled away slowly, a small smile on his face. Bruce watched as he walked down the hall and disappeared around the corner, gone from his life once again. Bruce shut the door quietly, the soft click echoing through the empty room. He slid down the door to the floor, burying his face in his hands. The tears came before he could stop them. 

“I miss you too, Tony.”


End file.
